Free PTO tracking spreadsheet template
A plain CSV with one row per payday accrual or day off. It opens in Excel, Google Sheets and Numbers.
The columns
| Column | What goes in it |
|---|---|
| Employee | The person’s name, the same way every time so filters work. |
| Leave type | Vacation, Sick, Personal, or whatever your policy uses. |
| Date | The payday for an accrual row, or the day off for a usage row. |
| Hours earned | The per-paycheck accrual. Our accrual calculator gives you the number. |
| Hours used | Hours taken off that day. |
| Running balance | The previous row’s balance plus earned minus used. In Sheets or Excel, use =F2+D3-E3 and fill down per person. |
| Note | Anything payroll should know. |
Making it work
- Keep one tab per employee, or one tab for everyone and filter by name. One tab per person is easier to read; one tab for all is easier to total.
- Add the accrual rows every payday. A missed week is the most common reason spreadsheet balances drift.
- At year end, apply your carryover cap by adding a negative row on January 1 for anything above the cap.
- Lock the balance column so formulas don’t get typed over.
When a spreadsheet stops being enough
A sheet works well for a handful of people. It gets harder once several people are asking for time off by text and email, someone forgets the payday rows, or two people book the same week without anyone noticing. That is the point where a shared planner with approvals saves time each week.
TeamPTOTracker adds the payday accruals for you, shows who’s out on a wall-planner view, and still exports a CSV. Free for up to 5 people.